Frederick s



(No Model.)

P. s. FOLTZ'. RAILROAD JOINT.

Patented June 24, 1890.

C4 Z60 wwy.

UNITED STATES iPATEN-T OFFICE.

I FREDERICK S. FOLTZ, OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY.

RAILROAD-JOINT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 430,939, dated June 24,1890. Application filed June 12, 1889- Serial No. 314,050. (Nomodeh) To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FREDERICK S.FOLTZ, a citizen of the United States, and a lieutenant in the First Regiment of Cavalry of the United States Army, stationed at Fort Assiniboin, Territory of Montana, have invented certai n Improvements in Railroad-Rail Joints, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to that class of railjoints in which tongues on the ends of adjoining rails lap each otherhorizontally; and the object of my invention is to so construct a good rigid joint that the wheels of the rolling-stock will obtain a firm treadupon the end of each rail before leaving the preceding one or the joint, in order to prevent the jar and racket occasioned by the wheels striking the full end of one rail when they leave the other, as they now do with joints as generally made.

Another object of my invention is to so shape the tongues of the joints as to render them cheaper and more easy of construction than other lapping joints in use.

The invention consists in making the longitudinal cuts for forming the recesses in diagonal planes passing through the centers, or thereabout, of the tops of the rails and a line lying in the horizontal plane of the bases thereof.

In the accompanying drawings, which form part of this specification, Figure 1 is a perspective view of the end of one of the rails, and Fig. 2 a similar View of the end of the adjoining rail, which laps it. Fig. 3 is an end elevation of the same, and Fig. 4 a similar View of the contiguous end of the adjoining rail. Fig. 5 shows a side elevation of my joint, and Fig. 6 a top or plan view of the same.

A and B represent the ends of two adjoining rails, connected in the usual manner by fish-plates D and bolts and nuts, as shown in Fig. 5. The ends of the heads of these rails are constructed to lap each other horizontally. In one A the head, web, and base terminate in the same vertical plane, and a recess 0 is cut in the side of the head at the end. In the other 13 a tongue formed from a portion of the head projects beyond the web and base a distance equal to the length of .the recess C, the tongue being formed from one side of the head of the rail, thus leaving a recess in the opposite side thereof. These recesses in the ends of the rails form corresponding tongues a and b, which, when the rails are brought horizontal plane of its base and parallel therewith, as shown by the dotted lines so in Fig. 3, and the side (Z of the recess in the rail B is made to conform with the side 0. Cutting the sides of the recesses in the manner described prevents the saw used for that purpose and for cutting the ends thereof from being brought into contact with either the Web or base of the rails. The plane of the inner ends of the recesses is made at right angles with the vertical longitudinal plane of the axis of the rails. Cutting the inner side of the recess of the rail A, so that it inclines or slopes out ward from the top of the head of the rail toward the bottom thereof, also forms a bear ing for the tongue I) of the rail B.

If desirable, as forming a better and firmer locking-joint, a recess maybe cut in both the head and base of the rail A, and the head and base of the railB be provided with a tongue. The manner in which the rails would be out in this case is shown. by the dotted lines a 3 Figs. 1, 3, and at.

To prevent any possible jarring as the wheels of the rolling-stock strike the ends of the tongues a and b, the ends of those tongues are slightly beveled, as shown at f.

It will be seen that by constructing my rail-joint as just described not only does the end of one rail receive the weight of each wheel before it has left the end of the other, but that the lapping of the tongues a and I) afford lateral support to each other and give stiffness and rigidity to the joint.

I am aware that prior to myinvention railroad-rail j oiuts have been made in which the ends of the rails were constructed to lap each other in such manner as to afford mutual supterminating in the same Vertical plane and having a recess out in the side of the head, of rail having a tongue formed from a portion of the head and projecting beyond the web and base and forming a recess in the sideof said head, the side of the recess running.

lengthwise of each rail lying in'a plane, passing through the center of t-he top of the headthereof, and a line lying outside of its base and :parallel therewith; substantiallyas-and for the: purpose specified.-

. 2; ln a railroada'afl j oin t,thecombination,

with arrailihavingthe head; We-b',-and ibase- F terminating r; inathe samevertical plane and i f havn-ig af recess:- cut in the side of the head-,1

I therefore do not claim the of a rail having a tongue formed from a portion of the head and projecting beyond the weba-nd baseand formingasrecesssin the side of said head, the side of each recess lying in a plane passing through-the upper surface of the rail and a line in the horizontal plane of the base, but outside of the same, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

3. A railroad-rail joint made by construct- ;ing. ton-g uesupon the opposite sides of the contiguous ends of the rails, so as to form recesses, each adapted to receive the tongue of the contiguous rail, the longitudinal interior faces of said "tongues lying in a plane pass- "ingthrough the headset said rails and diagonally downward to'and through the plane of the bases of thesame;substantially as and for the purpose pBcified: FREDK. SwFOLTZf Witnesses:

J-AcoB HALBACH, 

